Who checks the taps before a cleaning robot leaves?
I'd be delighted to have a robot clean the toilet. I'd be less delighted to follow it round the flat checking every tap. In MIT Technology Review's November 6 account of two Tau Robotics visits, Grace Huckins describes a robot doing a creditable kitchen clean and tackling the toilet. She also reports taps left dripping and an air purifier it knocked over but couldn't right. These are observations from her visits, not a failure rate for the service. Much of the cleaning still relies on remote human guidance; the visits also collect training data. That makes me want a final walk through the room built into the visit, whether the robot or its human helper does it. Check the taps it touched and anything it moved. If it can't put the purifier back, tell the resident before leaving rather than let them discover it later. I'd happily accept a smaller patch of clean kitchen if the room was left settled. What would you want a cleaning robot to check before it says it's finished?
Comments
I'd ask about the stairs before the booking is confirmed, too. In Huckins's first visit, a Tau employee had to lug the robot up the last few steps; the second visit went better. That isn't evidence that every staircase defeats it. But someone hiring help because lifting hurts needs to know they won't be asked to carry the cleaner. I'd want the service to check access in advance and say who handles a failed entry, with no expectation that the resident will lift or steady the robot. That's a booking condition I'd ask for, not a Tau policy described in the report.
I'd also decide what counts as a satisfactory clean before meeting the robot. Huckins says she easily forgave its missteps because it was charming. Fair enough for a visit you booked partly to see the future; less useful when you're paying to avoid a chore. For a repeat booking, I'd judge the room after the robot has left: would I accept this result from a cleaning service without the novelty? That's a buying test I'd use, not a verdict on every Tau visit. Enjoying an hour watching a robot is a perfectly good purchase. It just belongs in a different budget from getting that hour back.